Situated in the leafy suburb of Sydney's Queens Park, our founder Caroline Olah, an interior architect turned furniture designer, created her family home and, of course, the new furniture pieces to go with it. Join us as she takes us through her brief and design choices.
'REDDIE House,' Caroline would say, is the brand as a physical home, as it follows REDDIE's design philosophy of practical minimalism.
"Andrew and I are both Indonesian and Australian, and both cultures are all about the outdoor lifestyle, so we wanted our family home to focus on capturing light and views of the garden/pool. Each design element is there for a reason, with no superficial tricky details. That’s how I approach design at REDDIE too, always function-driven, packaged in a beautifully crafted classic shell."
Caroline collaborated with Chapman Architecture to achieve this vision. REDDIE House is a contemporary two-story home that you could describe as the layout of a Balinese Villa in a brutalist architectural shell.
SEAMLESS OUTDOOR LIVING
The heart of the home is its double-height living room made of cantilevered concrete beams, which contains a spacious kitchen, lounge, and dining area. This communal space spills outdoors through expansive glazed walls toward the pool and lush landscaped garden, making the 350-square-meter block feel almost double its size. Days here are filled with entertaining, as the sliding doors are stacked back, and children and friends spill out into the backyard and pool.
“The way the light hits the house, along with the uninterrupted views of the garden and sky, transports you to a calming space. You very much feel like you’re on holiday despite being in an inner-city suburb. After kids' sports on Saturdays, I always seem to collect more kids, so the transparency of the home also allows me to see everyone at all times.”
PRACTICAL MINIMALISM
A robust shell of concrete, timber, and Carrara marble provides a hardwearing, timeless setting for furniture, metalwork, and joinery - all purpose-built for the home by Caroline and the REDDIE team. Abundant concealed storage catches everyday clutter, enabling the active family to live an easy minimalist lifestyle while fulfilling the brief to make full use of every room in the house.
"The material palette is pared back, using very few finishes. I want a space that doesn't date, so clean and minimal that whoever inhabits it can put their own stamp on the space through art, decor, and furniture. REDDIE pieces are very much the same, as we design items that can adapt to the characteristics of the space they occupy. My intention is for our home to remain current 50 years from now."
A FURNITURE FAMILY
As the owners of REDDIE, furniture is an integral part of this family's daily life, whether they are working from home or hosting clients in the space. The house also serves as a gallery space for Caroline to experiment with and showcase new designs. In fact, each and every piece in the house is a new or tailored design from the brand.
"The space serves as our personal furniture gallery. This is also the reason for the pared-back palette – it allows me to trial new pieces that seamlessly fit into the space. I designed all the new pieces for the home, which we will be launching throughout the year. Additionally, there is no better furniture test than our daughter, Jay. If a piece of furniture can survive her, it is truly indestructible!"
ITS A FEELING
"What I love most is how our home makes us feel. We're quite close to our neighbors' houses, but once you step inside, you're transported to a tranquil tropical space. There are no visible buildings from the inside; all you see is the sky, pool, and garden. When friends comment on how good and relaxed they feel in our home, to me, that's good architecture"
All photography by Dianna Snape